Patti Komline

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MONTPELIER — Washington County Sen. Anthony Pollina says he is optimistic the Legislature will pass an ethics bill and create a State Ethics Commission to review and act on ethics complaints for those involved in state government. Lawmakers have hemmed and hawed for years on passing a tough ethics bill that would provide strong oversight over themselves and the executive branch of government. The Senate passed a measure last year very late in the legislative session that the House did not take up. Pollina, a Progressive, plans to introduce a bill that is nearly identical to last year’s and push for early action so both chambers have time to consider it. “I do think this will be the year that we’ll be able to make this happen. Continue Reading →

Vermont Press Bureau Chief Neal Goswami and Peter Hirschfeld with Vermont Public Radio discuss the first week of the legislative session with Patti Komline, a former Republican representative from Dorset. Continue Reading →

MONTPELIER — The House Ways and Means Committee has voted to approve an amendment to a marijuana bill that would allow for the legal possession of up to 1 ounce and cultivation of up to two marijuana plants. The amendment, which materialized in the committee Thursday, passed on a 7-4 vote Friday after a few minor changes. It would fundamentally alter the bill advanced by the House Judiciary Committee last week. The Judiciary Committee’s work stripped out the Senate’s language that legalized marijuana and created a regulatory structure for its retail sale. But support for that never materialized among Judiciary Committee members, so it was amended to create a commission to study the issue. Continue Reading →

MONTPELIER — The House Ways and Means Committee is considering an amendment to a marijuana bill that would allow for the legal possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana and cultivation of up to two marijuana plants. The amendment, which materialized in the committee on Thursday, could come up for a vote as early as Friday, according to members of the committee. It would fundamentally alter the bill advanced by the House Judiciary Committee last week. The Ways and Means Committee is reviewing a bill from House Judiciary that stripped away all legalization language and replaced it with a commission to study the issue. But about $500,000 in costs contained in the bill were not funded. Continue Reading →

MONTPELIER — The House tax writing committee has advanced a revenue bill that raises $14.1 in new money for the general fund and other special funds, but some lawmakers say it is just a fraction of the $48 million in new revenue the committee is expected to raise in total. The House Ways and Means Committee voted Wednesday night 7 to 4 to approve a miscellaneous tax bill — before the House Appropriations Committee has completed work on its budget. That has some members of Ways and Means complaining that budget writers have little incentive to make cuts to state spending. Rep. Janet Ancel, D-Calais, the committee’s chairwoman, said she took the unusual step of voting on a revenue package before the budget is finalized because some members of the committee will be out for an extended period. “I have two members of the committee who aren’t going to be here,” she said. Continue Reading →

MONTPELIER — A state senator has sent a letter to each of the seven ski resorts utilizing state land asking them to renegotiate leases, but the closing paragraph he included has some lawmakers concerned he has issued a thinly-veiled threat to raise their taxes if they do not agree. Chittenden County Sen. Tim Ashe, a Democrat and the chairman of the powerful Senate Finance Committee, sent the letters on Senate letterhead last week to Bromley, Okemo, Killington, Stowe, Smuggler’s Notch, Burke and Jay Peak. He signed each letter as chairman of Senate Finance. Ashe’s letters follow the release of a report by State Auditor Doug Hoffer last month that found the resorts’ lease payments to the state have not kept pace with the resorts’ economic growth. The long-term leases with the resorts range between 50 and 100 years. Continue Reading →

MONTPELIER — The Vermont House passed a bill Tuesday to ban microbeads in beauty products that have been found to cause harm to fish and other wildlife. The House gave preliminary approval to H.4 with a unanimous voice vote. It was passed unanimously by the House Fish and Wildlife Committee on Friday. The legislation, first brought to the attention of the House Fish and Wildlife Committee by Rep. Patti Komline, R-Dorset, has broad support across the political spectrum. The small, plastic beads typically end up in the state’s waterways because they are too small to be filtered out at water treatment plants. Continue Reading →

Vermont Press Bureau chief Neal Goswami and VPB reporter Josh O’Gorman talk about sugar, beagles, Vermont Health Connect and a dispute between two Penn State graduate students and the state Agency of Education. Continue Reading →

MONTPELIER — A bipartisan group of House members are pushing a new proposal to move the state away from Vermont Health Connect, but the consequences remain unclear if the state were to adopt the proposal. On Thursday, Reps. Patti Komline, R-Dorset, Heidi Scheuermann, R-Stowe, Jim Condon D-Colchester, and Adam Greshin, I-Warren, called for the state to transition from Vermont Health Connect to a Supported State-Based Marketplace Exchange. Oregon and Nevada have adopted the hybrid state-federal model after their state-based exchanges faced significant problems.

Vermont’s exchange, which also experienced significant tech challenges and is still not fully functional, allows some individuals to sign up for insurance plans through the website. But other individuals and all small businesses are enrolling through a paper process. Continue Reading →

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MONTPELIER — Former Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin said money, wary lawmakers and timing were the core challenges that ultimately caused his failure to deliver on a promise to implement a single-payer health care system in the state. The former Democratic governor reflected on that failure Tuesday at a forum at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

MONTPELIER — Vermont Rep. Peter Welch said he believes Republican President Donald Trump wants to ensure there is protected legal status for Dreamers after taking part in a bipartisan meeting with him Wednesday afternoon. Welch, a Democrat, met with Trump, senior staff and about 14 members of Congress Wednesday afternoon in the Cabinet Room inside the White House.

MONTPELIER — Sen. Bernie Sanders introduced his long-awaited Medicare-for-all legislation Wednesday, touting the support of 16 Democratic senators who signed on as co-sponsors, but plenty of crucial questions remain unanswered, including the cost. The support of one-third of the Democratic caucus in the Senate is a significant improvement for Sanders, who stood alone the last time he introduced a single-payer health care system in 2013.

MONTPELIER — Vermont Gov. Phil Scott is among the 20,000 Vermonters to receive a notice from the Department of Taxes warning that they may owe the state money from the oft-ignored use tax. Rebecca Kelley, the Republican governor’s spokeswoman, confirmed to the Vermont Press Bureau Thursday that Scott recently received the letter.

MONTPELIER — Gov. Phil Scott will sign an executive order today creating the Governor’s Marijuana Advisory Commission that will review myriad issues regarding the legalization of marijuana and look at 2019 for potential legislation to create a regulated retail market for pot. The first-term Republican is creating the commission after vetoing a bill in June passed by the Democratic-led Legislature that sought to legalize the possession of up to 1 ounce of dry marijuana and the cultivation of up to two mature marijuana plants and four immature plants beginning July 1, 2018.

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Recent Posts

MONTPELIER — Former Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin said money, wary lawmakers and timing were the core challenges that ultimately caused his failure to deliver on a promise to implement a single-payer health care system in the state. The former Democratic governor reflected on that failure Tuesday at a forum at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

MONTPELIER — Vermont Rep. Peter Welch said he believes Republican President Donald Trump wants to ensure there is protected legal status for Dreamers after taking part in a bipartisan meeting with him Wednesday afternoon. Welch, a Democrat, met with Trump, senior staff and about 14 members of Congress Wednesday afternoon in the Cabinet Room inside the White House.

MONTPELIER — Sen. Bernie Sanders introduced his long-awaited Medicare-for-all legislation Wednesday, touting the support of 16 Democratic senators who signed on as co-sponsors, but plenty of crucial questions remain unanswered, including the cost. The support of one-third of the Democratic caucus in the Senate is a significant improvement for Sanders, who stood alone the last time he introduced a single-payer health care system in 2013.

MONTPELIER — Vermont Gov. Phil Scott is among the 20,000 Vermonters to receive a notice from the Department of Taxes warning that they may owe the state money from the oft-ignored use tax. Rebecca Kelley, the Republican governor’s spokeswoman, confirmed to the Vermont Press Bureau Thursday that Scott recently received the letter.

MONTPELIER — Gov. Phil Scott will sign an executive order today creating the Governor’s Marijuana Advisory Commission that will review myriad issues regarding the legalization of marijuana and look at 2019 for potential legislation to create a regulated retail market for pot. The first-term Republican is creating the commission after vetoing a bill in June passed by the Democratic-led Legislature that sought to legalize the possession of up to 1 ounce of dry marijuana and the cultivation of up to two mature marijuana plants and four immature plants beginning July 1, 2018.